"···."
"···."
Inside the studio apartment sunk in silence.
Han Woo-jun looked at his older brother and once again recalled the previous night.
Only six hours ago.
The patient in the closed psychiatric ward who had suddenly used some strange superpower and attacked him.
-[Ambush]!
-[Protection of the Flame Spirit]
―Hrk!
―...What is this?
Fortunately, an unbelievable, unreal power had manifested by instinct.
A defensive skill.
That had saved him.
-[Basic Flame Control]
-[Orbital Fireball]
Because it was impossible to believe, he had spent the whole night testing countless skills he knew.
-[Wave of Flame]
-[Raging Flames]
He opened the wiki and recalled the Firemancer skills that had belonged to his class one by one.
Han Woo-jun was a smart man. No, a very smart man.
The fact that he had missed only one question on the College Scholastic Ability Test and graduated second in his class from a medical school filled with outstanding talents proved that.
So in a single day, he had been able to almost perfectly grasp how to control skills and Force.
Of course, it was not something he could do just because he was smart.
“This is··· just easy. Don’t tell me these abilities appear just from having played the game?”
In the first place, the difficulty was not that high.
For a power that had suddenly appeared out of nothing, it was far too easy and strong.
Soon, morning came.
Hard-to-believe news began filling the headlines.
Patients, doctors, and nurses alike all watched the news blankly.
The appearance of superhumans.
The assassination of the American president.
The sight of North Korea’s collapsed Pyongyang, and a bizarre man shouting that he was now the ruler of North Korea.
When he saw that news, the first thing Han Woo-jun thought of was his older brother.
Han Woo-hyun.
Han Woo-jun’s only sibling, who made his head hurt just by thinking about him.
A room-bound shut-in who was thirty damn years old and, far from getting a job, still took allowance money regularly and ate away at the household.
The game Han Woo-jun had followed along with only because his brother had forced him to when he was young, then quit the moment he grew a bit older.
World of Yggdrasill passed through Han Woo-jun’s mind.
―I quit after only reaching level 201.
His brother had told him this much was the prologue, and that if he just got past it, it would become fun, so Han Woo-jun had tried it.
Of that, 80% had been played not by Han Woo-jun, but by Han Woo-hyun in his place, though Han Woo-jun had personally hunted for the last two levels.
It had been when Han Woo-jun was still a high school student.
But after that, it had become even less fun, so he quit.
In any case, it was only nominally Han Woo-jun’s account. In reality, it was an account Han Woo-hyun used almost entirely.
―That damn game! How long are you going to keep playing it?! Fine, forget university, but you should get a job—or at least a part-time job!
―...I don’t know.
But in any case, when Han Woo-jun said he was quitting and told him to come to his senses too, Han Woo-hyun seemed to know shame and did not recommend it again.
That saved Han Woo-jun’s life.
―I have to go see Hyung. I’m sure Hyung also became a superhuman··· able to use his game character’s skills.
―Fuck, 300 million won? Where the hell did that kind of money come from?!
―What the hell did he do?!
His older brother hated it terribly when Han Woo-jun came to see him. He also hated Han Woo-jun’s nagging.
Han Woo-jun had also avoided forcing himself on his brother when his brother hated it.
He could not be bothered to act superior over the meager living expenses he sent.
He was busy enough with hospital work.
―Is he even in his room? No, before that. Is he even staying still...? He didn’t cause some huge incident, did he?
But now, the situation had changed. A reason to visit in a hurry had appeared.
An enormous sum of money with an unknown source, and Han Woo-hyun, who had surely awakened transcendent superpowers.
The connection between the two was far too suspicious.
After finishing that recollection, Han Woo-jun spoke in a doubtful voice.
“Hyung···? You are Hyung, right?”
He glared at Han Woo-hyun and tilted his head slightly in suspicion.
From his face, body, and atmosphere to his stance and impression, he could not be compared to before.
But objectively speaking, the only person who would be in this room at this hour was his brother.
“...Paladin.”
“Yes, that’s right. Paladin. My main character.”
Han Woo-hyun answered him as well.
He looked at his younger brother, who had not changed much except for the tips of his hair being faintly dyed red.
“Well, I’m glad nothing happened to you. No, no. It isn’t that nothing happened··· I mean.”
“I know what you’re trying to say. I also just grasped the situation.”
“...Your medication? Are you taking it properly? Why are you talking like that?”
Han Woo-jun asked in a worried tone. Only then did Han Woo-hyun realize one thing.
Two years ago, he himself had been a shut-in living with all kinds of mental illnesses. So he had been taking antidepressants and anti-anxiety medication.
Of course, after his brain was reassembled by Yggdrasill Force, most of that had disappeared.
Even so, because of mental issues, he had continued to suffer from depression for several months.
But he had overcome even that long ago through countless battles and conflicts.
“Of course, I’m taking it properly. Thanks to that, I’m in very good condition today. It feels as though I’ve been completely cured. It’s all thanks to you, Woo-jun.”
A smooth, beautiful voice carrying intense will flowed through Han Woo-hyun’s vocal cords.
“A-all thanks to me?”
“Yes.”
That confidence was far too strong. His voice was also far too coherent and powerful.
To his younger brother, that manner of speech did not belong to a depressed patient who had spent twenty years shut up in a room doing nothing but playing games.
“...Fuck, what is this? You’re not Han Woo-hyun, are you?”
Han Woo-jun’s face hardened as he answered aggressively.
Because his brother’s attitude, tone, personality, and everything else were far too different from what he remembered.
“Ah.”
Seeing his younger brother’s reaction, Han Woo-hyun realized his mistake.
The players he had just met had, from their perspective, been meeting Han Woo-hyun for the first time.
So he had not paid any attention to consistency, such as acting similarly to his past self.
Even with his younger brother, he had only thought that he needed to quickly entrust the family to him and explain what he had to do.
The gap between him and his past self was far too great. It was only natural to be suspicious.
“Wait. I really am your older brother, Han Woo-hyun.”
“Do you think I’m an idiot? What did you do to the person who lived in this room? Who are you? Did you send the money too?”
In an instant, fireballs appeared around Han Woo-jun with a flare.
Ho.
Han Woo-hyun admired him inwardly.
His younger brother had been a low-level user who quit the game five years ago.
And yet, judging by the look of things.
It seemed he had become skilled enough to use skills freely.
As expected, his younger brother was smart.
Incomparably more so than him.
“Answer me! The 300 million. What the hell are you plotting?! What did you do to Hyung?!”
After quickly searching through his memories, Han Woo-hyun found extremely strong evidence.
A basis that would make his younger brother accept that he was truly his biological brother.
“The year before last, you got extremely angry. I could not apologize then, but I should apologize now at least.”
“...Why? For what? Why are you apologizing?”
“For trying to take out a loan by using your medical license.”
“...Ha.”
In World of Yggdrasill, there had once been a trend called the Sunshine Loan.
What that meant was taking out a large loan to purchase hunting items.
Then, using those items to hunt and mine gold diligently.
Once enough gold had been mined, the loan would be repaid with it.
Then, the only thing left behind would be an excellent set of hunting items.
―Reading this makes me want to play Yggdrasill...
―I don’t play Yggdrasill, but I heard there’s an event going on lately and item prices are cheap.
―If you put in only about ten million won of initial capital, you can earn minimum wage while watching YouTube and Netflix.
―Isn’t that pretty doable?
―You can recover all the items later too, so it seems good···.
Naturally, it was insane.
Even for a fairly serious game-addicted shut-in, it was difficult to repay a loan with game money mining alone.
Every user who actually tried that sort of bullshit ended up heading for the Han River.
Han Woo-hyun had not truly believed that nonsense and tried it exactly as written.
He had only attempted to take out a loan while briefly changing equipment because the flow of gold had been blocked.
However, the loan limit available to an unemployed man in his thirties was far too low.
So he tried to borrow the name of a family member with a fairly decent occupation.
Naturally, the hospital was contacted immediately, and he was caught by his shocked younger brother and failed.
“...Is it really you?”
“Yes, really.”
“Ha.”
Han Woo-jun worked his mouth as though he had many things to say, then closed his lips.
“It’s a very late apology, so I’m even more sorry.”
“No, no. That isn’t what’s important···”
If it had been Han Woo-hyun before his regression, he would not have been able to interpret the silent gestures and expression at all.
Now, he could.
It was insight he had gained through countless conflicts between people and groups, wars, battles, and desperate struggles.
To Han Woo-jun, it seemed that rather than being shocked that the handsome, blond-haired, blue-eyed Westerner before him was truly his older brother.
He was more shocked by the apology for the loan attempt, which he had thought Han Woo-hyun would never apologize for.
“No amount of apologies would be enough. But right now, I have too much to say to speak only about that. And too much to do.”
Unfortunately, Han Woo-hyun had many things to do.
He had not rested nearly enough, but this was at least the minimum recovery he needed.
Now, he had to go to Gangnam District, Seoul.
“Too much to say? No, I have plenty too. The 300 million—what is that? Where the hell did that kind of money come from? More importantly···.”
“You saw the news, didn’t you? That player superhumans are running wild around the world.”
“Huh? Yeah, uh.”
At the sudden change of topic, his younger brother answered as though slightly dazed.
Right now, Han Woo-jun was confused. Very confused.
Because the situation was far too different from the meeting and conversation he had originally expected with his older brother.
While urgently seeking out his older brother’s studio apartment, Han Woo-jun had considered the worst possibility.
His older brother was a human being steeped in severe depression and persecution delusions.
A truly passive and antisocial person.
“There is something I must do.”
“Something Hyung must do?”
But perhaps, he had thought, that antisocial temperament might have evolved into an antisocial criminal one.
And if he had even become a superhuman capable of suddenly using transcendent-level abilities, then all the more so.
Han Woo-jun had come to prevent that possibility.
―Slide.
Han Woo-jun examined Han Woo-hyun, the person claiming to be his older brother, once more.
A height that seemed to approach 190 centimeters, easily over 180.
A sharp nose and shining blue eyes.
Body proportions reminiscent of an ancient Greek sculpture, a sleek facial line and figure.
Skin so white it was almost snow-white. Blond hair that looked like melted gold.
But he could accept all of that.
After roughly looking into it, it seemed all players had bodies that assimilated with their characters in proportion to their levels.
“You are someone I’ve always had many reasons to apologize to. It is embarrassing to apologize only now.”
What he truly could not adjust to was that way of speaking.
Responsibility, duty, desperation, despair, remorse···
An attitude that could not possibly suit his older brother.
“But I ask this of you. This is something I am pushing onto you because there are far too many things I must do.”
“What work in this situation? You’re unemployed in the first place.”
“Mother and Father. I want to entrust our family to you. Although you are not a high-level player, you should be able to at least stay beside them and protect them for the time being.”
“That isn’t what matters! I’m asking where the hell the 300 million came from!”
“Do not worry. It is not problematic money. Tomorrow, tomorrow I will tell you everything.”
“···Hyung.”
“That money is the smallest apology I can offer for all the trouble I have caused until now.”
"···."
“I ask this of you.”
“···What the hell is this thing you have to do?”
Instead of answering, Han Woo-hyun glanced at the clock.
“I do not have time, so watch the news later.”
“What? Wait···.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Leaving behind his stunned younger brother’s voice, he left the apartment.
Because the time when Korea’s strongest Villain Players would begin their activities in earnest had come right before his eyes.